Romantic Country Magazine Spring 2011 Issue

I so enjoy Romantic Country. It has been a favorite magazine of mine since it's first issue...then when it comes in the mail, I grab it up and can't wait to read through it. I've already gone through the entire spring 2011 issue and enjoyed every page. I hope this post acts more like a "teaser" for you to get your own issue to enjoy rather than me telling too much about it.

First of all, I loved the article about Sunday Hendrickson's office. Ever since I was a child and my father insisted that I make sure I read who the author and illustrator of a book were before I read the book (much to my impatience at the time), I still today look at who wrote magazine articles, who styled them, who photographed them, etc. I know Sunday's name comes up as a stylist a great deal in several magazines, and so I was interested in this article about her office. Very nice.

Then the article about romantic vintage roses is beautiful in every way. I love roses and decorating with them. The article offers some beautiful ideas.

Then the article about Liz Davis' home/shop was a pure delight. As you can see here, she puts up the lace valences in this bedroom withpush pins....I thought how extra special they would look with some of the thumbtacks I make pushed in to add extra sparkle and glamor (like the ones below).

I hope I've encouraged you get the magazine for yourself. It is a beautiful publication, and I'm sure you'll enjoy it as much as I have.

Well rested...

...and ready for a new week. We had the MOST restful weekend which is something we haven't had for a long time. We didn't do much...slept in, lingered over coffee, weren't rushed for anything...went out to dinner once...went to church twice...had corn chowder with my parents after church yesterday...read over the newspaper (can't remember the last time we did that), watched a few DVDs...*sigh*. We are all well now having gotten over our colds and coughs. It's great to come off a weekend and feel refreshed. There are some projects that I have in the works...and I'm ready to go on them!

Creative Teacup Lights

I have great appreciation for creative people with unique ideas...and this person has the most fascinating things--vintage teacup lights! I saw these on Etsy today. How can I not like, well, anything with a teacup involved in it? So, I thought I'd show you these. Hop on over to this seller's Etsy shop at Mostaza Seed to see her other work.

Mmmmmm!

I just discovered this at Walmart. We had never seen it before. Have you? It has probably been around for the last 10 years....but this cranberry version of Stove Top is super yum. It was on the end of one of the aisles. I tried to find it in our regular grocery store, but with all the varieties of Stove Top available, this one wasn't anywhere to be seen. We like cranberries anyway. They give a nice little sweet bite to whatever they are in AND they sure make a dish or cookie pretty with their gorgeous, deep reddish-pink color. I always keep a container of Stove Top on hand in case I ever need a REALLY quick meal. I open up a can of chicken and stick it in the water with the butter before putting in the stuffing. *ching* Instant yummy meal in about 8 minutes. Anyway, if you haven't tried this...I'd recommend it. Yum!

The Thrill of Being Patient

Sometimes patiently waiting truly pays off. The brooch on the left was found in a bag of goodies I bought well over a year ago. Though I really like it I couldn't quite use it because of its missing pieces (and hadn't found the right thing to embellish with it). Well, this past weekend, my parents bought me a wonderful bag of vintage goodies. Believe it or not, the piece on the left was in the bag. Yippee! Now I can use them both to make one lovely complete focal piece. I'm delighted and am glad that the waiting has paid off. It can be such fun to constantly be on the look out for pretty vintage things...I just have to remember to be patient.

Glass Bead Treasures has Joined Facebook!

Well, I took the plunge to join Facebook...but through my business, Glass Bead Treasures. I'd love having a visit by any and all and would greatly enjoy being "liked" or to receive any comments. I'm even offering a 10% discount in my Etsy shop to those who use the coupon code given in my Facebook entry. Try clicking on the link to the right and hopefully it will take you to my page. There is still a great deal I don't know about how everything works, but in time I hope to enjoy using Facebook. Any suggestions from tried and true users would be most welcome.

Bits and Pieces to Catch Up

I have indeed been missing in action...however, I am back. There were some family things to attend to last week...one of which was seeing my grandparents whom I haven't seen in several years. After Mom's accident and the health difficulties of my other grandmother, there has been a great desire to visit my other grandparents. They are in their mid-80's and not getting any younger. Life is short! We must do what we can when the opportunity arises. It was a wonderful visit and hard to leave since they are far away, and we aren't sure when we'll see them again.

While away, I received an email from Sadie that Lollishops will be closing its doors. Was I sad to hear this news! I had signed up to be a part of Lollishops before it went live on line. It was great to be a part of Sadie's vision. There were opportunities to do press kits, craft challenges, advertise in major magazines, and be a small part of a larger group of very talented people. Many, many thanks to Sadie for the opportunity. I will miss Lollishops in the new year.

Also, many thanks to Cap Creations for the Distal Funk cookie stamp giveaway...I actually won! I was able to choose any two cookie stamps that I wished from Distal Funk's Etsy site, and I chose the snowflake pattern and the teacup pattern. Also included was a little recipe booklet. I can't wait to make up some cookies and stamp the top of them then enjoy with a hot cup of tea. Yum!! Please, visit Distal Funk's store. These stamps are of exceptional quality and beauty.

Inexpensive Little Girl Room Decorating Ideas

I thought I'd share what we did in our little girl's room a while back in case you have a redecorating project in mind this winter and would like a few inexpensive ideas. I found a rug (sorry, didn't take a picture of that) at Big Lots that had olive greens, purples, pinks, ivory, and light blues in it. So, I made the theme of her room in those colors...besides she likes pink and purple. Since she also lives princesses and crowns and sparkles (mmmm...wonder where she gets that from??), I found a play crown from the toy section of Walmart for the very top of her window with pink and blue sparkles. An inexpensive (also a Big Lots find for $7) sheer scarf pulled through the crown and draped over the edges of the curtain makes a soft, feminine, finished look. I made the curtains out of material to match the purple in the rug.

I put the scarf through holders on each end. Also, I wrapped a wired garland of iridescent stars around the scarf to add more interest and color to the ivory material. The iridescent coloring picks up the purples, blues, and pinks wonderfully, and the garland also adds another element of sparkle to the window.

Then I got some flower, butterfly, and leaf stamps from the local hardware store. My mom gave me the teapot and teacup stamps, so I already had them. I matched the paints (the walls were already a warm ivory) for the stamping with the colors in the rug again--pink, light blue, dark purple, light purple, green, and off-white. I used acrylic craft paints which are pretty inexpensive. Of course, I had to add a little of my own flourish with a teapot and a teacup in the room. The stamps make a nice alternative to wallpaper and are much less costly than hiring a person to come and paint by hand. The corner of the mirror needed something, so the teapot went there. I added the "tea" coming out of the pot by hand.

I stamped everywhere but not without purpose.

I added butterfly trails and extra flourishes and some detail in the flowers, and instead of a mouse at the floor by the door, I put a steaming cup of tea with hand-painted steam coming out and dots on the teacup. Her bed is in a corner, so I put pink netting (an Ebay find) in the corner to "round it out" and soften the corner. She feels like she is sleeping in a "princess tent".

Well, I hope you like some of the ideas. I'd love to read about your project, if you used any of these ideas, and how it turned out.